NASCAR Race Legends - Cale Yarborough
Cale Yarborough was born in Timmonsville, SC near Darlington Raceway.
He attended his first Southern 500 in 1950 as a spectator.
That was the beginning of his love for racing.
He wanted to drive, not just watch.
As a teenager he decided to try it, so he lied about his age to be able to compete.
Needless to say, he got caught and was disqualified by NASCAR.
His real debut was in 1957 when he raced in the Southern 500, driving the #30 Pontiac.
His career cranked up in the "60's when he finished fifth twice in 1963.
The next season brought his first win at Valdosta Speedway, placing him tenth in the final standings.
In 1967 he won two races but dropped to 20th because of only running 17 events.
In 1968 he won the first of his four wins at the Daytona 500.
That same year, Ford Motor Company came out with a Cale Yarborough Special Edition Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Limited Edition.
Less than 1000 were made and the car became known as the Talladega/Yarborough Cyclone.
In the 1970 season, he reached 14 wins.
He also did some competing in open-wheel Indy cars during the next couple of years and ran every race in the season in 1973.
He won the NASCAR championships in '76, '77 and '78.
That made him the only driver in NASCAR history to ever win three in a row.
1980 brought Yarborough six wins and a career-high 14 poles.
He lost the championship that year by only 19 points to Dale Earnhardt.
In 1984, he became the first driver to qualify for the Daytona 500 with a speed of over 200mph.
Altogether he had 83 wins, which places him at number five on the all-time NASCAR winner's list (behind Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip, who are tied for third with 84).
In 1988 he ran his final season, making two ninth place finishes.
He retired from driving at the end of that year.
From the late "80's to around 2000, Yarborough dabbled in car ownership with various sponsors but soon after that the team disappeared from the Cup Circuit.
Born: March 27, 1940 Birthplace: Timmonsville, SC Awards: 1976, 1977, 1978 Winston Cup Champion, 1984 IROC Champion, 4 - Time Daytona 500 Winner (1968, 1977, 1983, 1984) 1993 International Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee 1994 National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame Inductee 1994 National Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Inductee 1996 Court of Legends Inductee at Charlotte Motor Speedway 1998 Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers NASCAR Cup Statistics: 560 races run over 31 years Best Cup Position: 1st - 1976, 1977, 1978 (Winston Cup) First Race: 1957 Southern 500 (Darlington) Last Race: 1988 Atlanta Journal 500 (Atlanta) First Win: 1965 (Valdosta) Last Win: 1985 Miller High Life 500 (Charlotte)
He attended his first Southern 500 in 1950 as a spectator.
That was the beginning of his love for racing.
He wanted to drive, not just watch.
As a teenager he decided to try it, so he lied about his age to be able to compete.
Needless to say, he got caught and was disqualified by NASCAR.
His real debut was in 1957 when he raced in the Southern 500, driving the #30 Pontiac.
His career cranked up in the "60's when he finished fifth twice in 1963.
The next season brought his first win at Valdosta Speedway, placing him tenth in the final standings.
In 1967 he won two races but dropped to 20th because of only running 17 events.
In 1968 he won the first of his four wins at the Daytona 500.
That same year, Ford Motor Company came out with a Cale Yarborough Special Edition Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II Limited Edition.
Less than 1000 were made and the car became known as the Talladega/Yarborough Cyclone.
In the 1970 season, he reached 14 wins.
He also did some competing in open-wheel Indy cars during the next couple of years and ran every race in the season in 1973.
He won the NASCAR championships in '76, '77 and '78.
That made him the only driver in NASCAR history to ever win three in a row.
1980 brought Yarborough six wins and a career-high 14 poles.
He lost the championship that year by only 19 points to Dale Earnhardt.
In 1984, he became the first driver to qualify for the Daytona 500 with a speed of over 200mph.
Altogether he had 83 wins, which places him at number five on the all-time NASCAR winner's list (behind Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip, who are tied for third with 84).
In 1988 he ran his final season, making two ninth place finishes.
He retired from driving at the end of that year.
From the late "80's to around 2000, Yarborough dabbled in car ownership with various sponsors but soon after that the team disappeared from the Cup Circuit.
Born: March 27, 1940 Birthplace: Timmonsville, SC Awards: 1976, 1977, 1978 Winston Cup Champion, 1984 IROC Champion, 4 - Time Daytona 500 Winner (1968, 1977, 1983, 1984) 1993 International Motorsports Hall of Fame Inductee 1994 National Motorsports Press Association Hall of Fame Inductee 1994 National Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Inductee 1996 Court of Legends Inductee at Charlotte Motor Speedway 1998 Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers NASCAR Cup Statistics: 560 races run over 31 years Best Cup Position: 1st - 1976, 1977, 1978 (Winston Cup) First Race: 1957 Southern 500 (Darlington) Last Race: 1988 Atlanta Journal 500 (Atlanta) First Win: 1965 (Valdosta) Last Win: 1985 Miller High Life 500 (Charlotte)
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